Launch monitors for measuring golf ball flight characteristics and club head swing characteristics are known. Typically, the golf ball is marked with at least one contrasting area and the launch monitor acquires photographic images of the ball to compute performance characteristics.
One particularly problem has been the ability to verify that the information received from the launch monitors is accurate and repeatable. Improvements to launch monitors wherein they are now easily portable, which is of particular importance in that monitors need to be moved to the most desirable teaching or club fitting locations, e.g., on an outdoor driving range or golf course fairway. Because of the repeated handling and movement of these portable monitors, it is crucial that the accuracy be maintained and a reliable method available to substantiate that the performance data that is presented to the golfer is correct. Therefore, there must be an easy and convenient means to calibrate launch monitors to insure their accuracy. Present methods for checking accuracy of launch monitors have been limited to those of a static nature, and there has been a need in the industry for an apparatus that employs a dynamic verification method. The present invention presents such an apparatus.